


Do You Care If He Jumps?

by elliseleven (orphan_account)



Category: NoStranger (Video Game)
Genre: Failed Suicide Attempt, Gen, Implied/Referenced Suicide, NoStranger Spoilers, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-26
Updated: 2020-08-26
Packaged: 2021-03-06 18:27:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,956
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26123467
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/elliseleven
Summary: After everything that had happened, Adam was tired. The thought of his life ending scared him, but he had to do it. He had planned to get this over with quickly, but a certain friend wasn’t letting him get away so easily.*Inspired by texts/dialogue from NoStranger*
Relationships: Adam Verdu & Player
Kudos: 7





	Do You Care If He Jumps?

_ You see a man at the edge of a building. He looks like he’s about to jump. Do you care if he jumps? _

There was silence except for his breathing. Adam stood at the edge of a tall building, staring at the ground he would soon be meeting. He’d thought about this scenario so many times, but he never thought it would come to this. His plan… failed. There was no other way to put it. The love of his life was dead. That made two now… Everyone always left him. He was the only one left.

A rumbling noise filled the air, causing Adam to turn to the sound. His eyes widened as he saw a car turn into the parking lot. No one should be coming here. This building had long been abandoned. He’d had to pick the lock just to get in.

The car stopped abruptly. The engine only just stopped before the person rushed out. Adam didn’t recognize them, but it seemed they recognized him.

“Hey, stranger!”

He frowned. “Who are you?”

“Your helper!”

Adam froze. It couldn’t be… How had they found him?

Before he could ask, they threw out a question of their own.

“Why are you jumping?”

_ I yell, ‘why are you jumping?’ _

Adam pretended not to hear. He didn’t want to answer. 

_ He can’t hear you. He’s too high up. _

Enough time went by that he hoped they would give up and go home, but they didn’t. They repeated the question, but louder this time. It was loud enough that Adam couldn’t ignore it this time.

_ Can he not hear me or is he not listening? _

Adam chuckled, his eyes welling with tears. Did they really care so much about him? It was hard to believe. No one cared about him anymore.

“Life is terrible. Nothing is going right. I try my best every day, but it’s irrelevant. The person I love left me. This is my decision.”

The person on the ground seemed to be thinking about a response to this. Adam wondered why they were even trying. He had done terrible things, after all. Why bother trying to save him?

“I understand that you’ve lost people you love. I have too.” Their smile seemed genuinely sympathetic, and Adam couldn’t help but smile back. “But you have me! You’ve already helped me so much, and I hope I’ve helped you. I can’t forget what you’ve done, but I hope I can save at least one life today.”

_ Tell him I understand and if he needs someone to talk to, I’m here. _

A teardrop fell all the way down from the building’s roof to the ground below. Adam suddenly realized how high up he was. He felt scared, but he swallowed it down. He had to do this. He didn’t deserve life anymore. 

“Thank you,” he said, “but it’s too late. Nobody will be sad when I’m gone. I will never love again.”

_ I will be a forgotten stain on the pavement. _

His helper began to cry. They knew that Adam had lost a lot of people dear to him, but what about them?! They cared for Adam more than he could probably ever realize. How could they show him that?

“Why will you never love again?” Their voice cracked as they spoke.

Adam gave another dry chuckle. “You have to ask all the people who left me.” 

His mind flashed back to Pepper, Alazne, and her mother. They all died because of him. He choked up. The memories were too much for him, but he never wanted to forget any of them. He wished his helper had never come here, so he could end this in peace. Maybe he could finally be with them all again… soon.

_ And, now, I am the last one. _

“I would never leave you.”

Adam almost didn’t hear them, their voice was so quiet. He didn’t want to believe that. Everyone left him in the end. It was a fact of life; there was no escaping it. He knew that better than anyone.

“Please just let me leave.” Adam’s voice cracked this time. 

He was so, so tired. Couldn’t they just let him go? No one had ever held him back before. Why did this have to happen  _ now _ when he was so close to doing it? The one time he’d found enough courage to even get up this high, someone had to come and ruin his chances.

They smiled up at him, and Adam suddenly wanted to burst into tears. “While I respect your decision, I also want to talk and grab something to eat with you.”

The casual way this was said was too ridiculous, especially at a time like this. Adam laughed without meaning to and soon, both of them were laughing. He hadn’t felt like this in a while. It seemed that his helper had always been good at making him feel better, if only just for a moment.

But he had to remind himself of why he was here. He’d had good moments, good days, good years, even, but they never lasted forever. Something always took that away from him, and he was left with misery every single time. He was tired of it.

_ There is nothing you can say that will stop him. In every scenario, he jumps. That’s just how it goes. _

He steeled himself. He couldn’t let something so small stop him from finally doing something right. The world was better off without him. 

As they watched Adam on the top of that building, they knew they had to say something more before it was too late. Apparently just offering lunch wasn’t enough.

“Adam, please!”

He glanced down to them, a tired look in his eyes. “You’re not giving up, are you?”

“Nope!” They looked almost happy with themself, which made Adam smile. “I’m not leaving until you come down here.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Is that so? Then what would you do if I jumped right in front of you?”

“I would catch you, silly!”

He grinned. “I doubt you’re strong enough for that.”

They shrugged. “I guess not.” Not even a beat of silence passed before they changed the subject. They knew they couldn’t stop talking. “Hey, wanna hear a pizza joke?”

Adam sighed. They were clearly stalling for time, but he had to admit he liked their style. “Not really. It’s gonna be cheesy.”

“Exactly! You’re so good at this!”

Adam couldn’t tell if they were really so excited or if they were putting on an act, but regardless, it was helping him. 

_ You don’t get it. No words will stop someone. _

“So,” they tried again. “How about grabbing some lunch with me? You must be starving. I know I am.”

Adam considered it. He hadn’t eaten a thing since yesterday, and only then had he eaten a snack. There was no point, after all. He knew there would be no need. Despite this, he could really go for a burger right now.

He took a while to answer. Was he really going to back out of his plan just for one meal? Was he really that weak?

“What do I get if I come down?”

They thought about this for a minute. “Well, you’ll get food, for starters. And also,” they deliberately left a pause to make sure Adam was listening, “you’ll have a friend. Someone who cares about you and will help you.” They didn’t know how much they could help, considering the extent of what Adam did, but they would still do all they could.

“Right.” 

It was still hard to believe that there was someone who really cared for him, but he couldn’t ignore it any longer. So many people had left him, but one person hadn’t. And he had to remember that.

“Fine. I’m coming down. Wait for me, okay?”

“Of course.”

_ They will always jump. The question is do you care? _

Soon enough, Adam was back on the ground. The relief he felt was overwhelming. Feeling the tarmac beneath his feet, reality hit him. He was still alive. He hadn’t jumped like he’d promised himself.

_ That is not how the world works. You have the power to save a life. _

“Aw, Adam, don’t cry!”

He almost didn’t hear them. He began to sob, realizing how close he had come to dying. He hadn’t wanted to die. He felt like he had no choice, but his friend showed him there was always another choice.

They enveloped Adam in a hug. His arms hung limp. He didn’t have the energy to move them, but it didn’t matter. They couldn’t imagine what he must be feeling right now, so all they could do was be there and hope that was enough.

_ I want to believe what you think. _

Eventually, Adam reciprocated the hug. Being held by someone, he felt content. He never thought he would feel like that ever again. He could easily stay like that forever.

“Are you okay?” They knew it was an empty question, but they wanted to be sure.

“I guess. Thank you.”

“For what?”

“Saving me.”

_ He doesn’t jump. _

His friend pulled out of the hug, but kept their arms around him. It was like if they let go, he would disappear. “Don’t thank me. It was the least I could do.”

Adam nodded, trying not to cry again. “Hey. How about we grab something to eat? I don’t know about you, but I’m starving.”

_ He comes down and he says he’ll go grab something to eat with you. _

They giggled. “Yes, I would love to.”

_ Are you happy now? _

They shared one last hug then the two of them made their way to the car. Adam had taken the bus here since he assumed he would have no need for his car after today. It turned out that he was wrong and for once, he was happy about that.

They opened the passenger door for Adam, which surprised him.

“Thank you, my friend,” he grinned.

“You’re very welcome.”

Once the two of them were buckled in, the driver turned to Adam.

“So where do you wanna go?”

Adam shrugged. He hadn’t thought that far ahead. “Um, I don’t know. Wherever you want.”

“But this is all for you! Surely, you should make the decision.”

He sighed. He doubted he had the mental capacity to make any sort of decision, but he relented. He was tired of talking already. “How about the Grazin’ Diner? It’s not too far from here.”

They nodded. “Yeah, I know it. I doubt they have many vegetarian options though.”

Adam laughed. “I suppose not. How about I search up the menu, and if there’s nothing there for you, we can pick another place?”

“Sure.” 

A thought occurred to them, and they raised an eyebrow as Adam took out his phone. “I thought you weren’t good with technology.”

He looked across to them and smiled. “That was a lie, unfortunately. I’m sorry.”

“Well, no more lies from now on, okay?”

“Of course.”

“And we can discuss your jail sentence over lunch.”

Adam spluttered, almost dropping his phone. “My  _ what? _ ”

“Only joking!”

He pretended to wipe sweat from his brow. “Phew! You really had me scared there for a minute!”

“Yeah, sorry.” They felt like a hypocrite, but they couldn’t drop this on him now. Maybe later, after they’d both had a nice talk.

_ I want you to believe it. _

But that could wait until later. What mattered now was that Adam was alive. Three lives lost, one saved. While it wasn’t the best, it could’ve always been worse.

_ I want to believe it too. _

“Now, let’s go. I don’t think my stomach can take much more of a wait.”


End file.
